‘The Storm Sister’ by Lucinda Riley (The Seven Sisters Series #2)

This series is an interesting mix of mystery, family saga, light historical fiction, and romance. It’s really one huge story, chopped up into seven parts, so aside from the first one, The Seven Sisters, which introduces the series as well as features the oldest sister Maia, each book stands alone. The fifth instalment is just coming out in Feb 2019, so this series is very much still in progress. The author has shared that the seventh will wrap up the hidden plot running through all of the books, and the full story will be revealed. Questions will finally be answered, like, “Who is the mysterious Pa Salt and who is the seventh sister we haven’t met yet, but has a name?”

The Storm Sister is about Ally, a professional competitive sailor and closet musician. When tragedy strikes, Ally must rally (sorry :)) and her journey of recovery brings her (and us) into the classical music world of Edvard Grieg and Henrik Ibsen in Norway.

I’m really enjoying this series, and will definitely carry on with it, but it is not flawless. It’s not great literature and a bit too predictable, despite a few twists and turns, but I’ve enjoyed the historical aspects and the interesting settings around the world. Things do tend to work out rather amazingly well for all of the characters, who are a bit two-dimensional to be honest, but I cannot deny that this is a lovely easy-to-read modern family saga to get lost in. I am reassured also by the fact that this series was recommended to me by a man in my book club whose reading taste I respect, so it does have wide appeal and is worthwhile enough to chase away those ‘guilt about indulging in a cheesy romance’ feelings. This series just might help me make it through the winter–just one a month, doled out gradually like left-over Halloween candy…:)